Phlegma weblog

Age of Political Segregation

The New York Times colomnist David Brooks has some good points in his article "Age of Political Segregation"

As the Emory political scientist Alan Abramowitz has shown, a college-educated Democrat is likely to be more liberal than a high-school-educated Democrat, and a college-educated Republican is likely to be more conservative than a high-school-educated Republican. The more you crack the books, the more likely it is you'll shoot off to the right or the left.

Once you've joined a side, the information age makes it easier for you to surround yourself with people like yourself. And if there is one thing we have learned over the past generation, it's that we are really into self-validation.

I agree with his premises of his argument, but I´m not sure if like the conclusion.

Fight the occupation, support the Iraqis

Johann Hari has got an excelent post at his site: Liberal despair won't help the Iraqis now.

He´s been corresponding with an Iraqi asylum-seeker living in Glasgow, and has been turned into promoting the war in Iraq.

How can we despair while a terrorised country fights for democracy? There are two main forms of pessimism spreading through British opinion like dry rot. I can understand (and share) one of those fears: that the US has no intention of promoting democracy in Iraq. But many people - mostly on the right - have begun to declare that Iraqis themselves do not want democracy for their country. Last week a Tory MP said casually to me: "Iraqis don't want to vote. They want to visit Mecca and chop off their neighbours' hands."

I accept Johann Haris position. But I must point out why I disagree with his conclution.
Saddam Hussein has been proven a dictator several times - and the Iraqi people and the region is better off without his regime. But the war against him wasn´t justified.
The war against Iraq was based on lies and deception, and the allied forces that fronted the war acted like a self righteous lynch mob.

If the International community is to act on the regimes of others, we have to have the United Nations behind the resolution.

If we accept the way of the allied forces, one could argue invading the US. Because the US have weapons of mass destruction and they have a regime which isn´t elected by a majority of the nations voters. Of course I´m not suggesting an invation of the US. But I´m saying that the allied forces didn´t have enough support to justify the war.

But back to mr Hari. He has got one vital point:

Why aren't British trade unions doing far more to back their Iraqi comrades, who have been gassed and butchered for decades but can now organise freely? Where is the solidarity in Britain for terrified Iraqis trying at last to build a democracy? For most British people, marching to stop the war - the war that removed Saddam - has been the limit of their contribution to the Iraqi cause. Where are they now? Why are so few British people even now pressuring their government to act in line with Iraqi opinion?

Let us use our pens, our drive for peace and our lust for democracy to support the organizations working for a better Iraq. And as Johann Hari says, it may be that Iraq's Thomas Jefferson is an ayatollah.

Durão Barroso accept

Prime Minister of Portugal, José Manuel Durão Barroso, accepted today the appointment to the presidency of the European Commission.

As I wrote in my post yesterday, Mr Durão Barroso is more a compromice than a solution. But he is a solution none the less.

Porn Case Unresolved

The US Supreme Court today said that a law aimed at protecting children from Internet pornography probably violates free-speech rights.

The Child Online Protection Act is said to be compromising the free-speech rights of adults. But is free-speech rights hurt if your children are blocked from watching porn? Apparently.

But it shouldn´t be so difficult to keep children from looking at "harmful" material online without compromising the free-speech rights of adults.

al-Quida may reward Bush with strike

According to a senior US intelligence official, al-Qaida may 'reward' American president with strike aimed at keeping him in office. (Guardian)

[He is] arguing that the west is losing the war against al-Qaida and that an "avaricious, premeditated, unprovoked" war in Iraq has played into Osama bin Laden's hands.

Peace activists must accept the law

Five peace activists facing criminal charges over a protest at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire were today challenging a judge's pre-trial ruling that they cannot plead the illegality of the war in Iraq as part of their defence. (The Guardian)

It is alleged that the protesters tried to break into RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, where US B-52 bombers were stationed, to disarm and ground the planes in three separate incidents before the start of the war in March 2003. Yet they plead the illegality of the war in Iraq as part of their defence. The judge ruled that they can´t.

This one I don´t understand. I appreciate that people take actions over their ideas. But this doesn´t help the fact that they did break the law. And when you do, you accept the consequences. But I must say that up to this point, they deserve respect.

Iraqis to take custody of Saddam

Iraq's prime minister says former President Saddam Hussein will be handed to Iraqi legal custody on Wednesday and charged the following day.

Saddam Hussein will not face trial for several months and will remain in a US-run jail until Iraqi detention services are ready to take physical custody.

Eleven other top detainees will be handed over, including former Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz, Ali Hassan al-Majid - known as "Chemical Ali" - former Vice-President Taha Yassin Ramadan, and two of Saddam Hussein's half-brothers.

And what charges will Saddam Hussein be facing? Let´s have a look with the BBC:

Iran-Iraq war
In 1980, after a series of border skirmishes following Iran's Islamic revolution, Iraq invaded Iran. The ensuing bloody war claimed the lives of at least one million people.

Attacks on Iraqi Kurds
In 1988, when Kurds in northern Iraq were pushing for autonomy, Iraq forces used cyanide gas against the Kurdish town of Halabja, killing an estimated 5,000 civilians.

Invasion of Kuwait
In August 1990 Saddam Hussein sent Iraqi troops into Kuwait which led to the Gulf War in January 1991. Iraqi soldiers are alleged to have tortured and summarily executed detainees and on retreating looted Kuwait City and seized hundreds of Kuwaitis, taking them back to Baghdad.

Scud attacks on Israel
Israel says it wants Saddam Hussein to be prosecuted for Iraqi Scud missile attacks on Israel during the 1991 Gulf War.

Killings, persecution and torture
Evidence has emerged of 270 mass graves across Iraq which are believed to hold the remains of possibly tens of thousands of people.

UN inspections
During the 1990s, he defied the United Nations and the international community by failing to comply with international weapons inspectors over the issue of weapons of mass destruction.

Books for Baghdad

Dr. Al-Hamdani, an Iraqi-born American citizen, is heading up an effort with other JSU faculty members to collect textbooks that will be sent to Baghdad University.

Steven Taylor at PoliBlog have joined his colleague, and has turned to the blogosphere for help.

Books or checks made payable to Books for Baghdad may be sent to Dr. Al-Hamdani in care of the Department of Biology, Jacksonville State University, 700 Pelham Road North, Jacksonville, AL 36265.

The new European President

Just as the Portugal have reached the semi finals of European Football Championship, the Prime Minister is climbing even higher. He now seems to be the choice for the presidency of the European Commission.

José Manuel Durão Barroso is a widely respected figure from the centre-right, but he is also a compromise figure. He was hardly anyone’s first choice, rather the best remaining option once those candidates that offended one or more of the EU’s biggest members were eliminated from the race. On Tuesday June 29th, EU heads of government are due to meet in Brussels to confirm Mr Durão Barroso in the job. If so, he will take over in November. (The Economist)

It wouldn´t surprise me if Sweden, Greece or Spain would object to Mr Barroso.

Seriously, I hope that the leaders of the European Union for once will agree on a vital issue.

Iraqi Handover

The American-led military occupation of Iraq formally ended today, with Iraq's new leaders taking over in a surprise ceremony that came two days ahead of schedule. The early transfer was designed to foil attacks by guerrilla insurgents whom American forces are still struggling to vanquish.

...

The entire ceremony, witnessed by no more than 30 people, lasted about 10 minutes.
(New York Times)

Don´t know why, but I got a feeling that something is withheld.

But let´s forget about the conspiracy theories. This is a happy day on the path to a more just world. There may of course be set backs - but let´s all try to make is so. Let´s at least imagine it today.